Crowning of Queen Josephine, considered to be the start of uniform bridesmaid dresses
In a city with so much fashion and history, why would you want to learn in the four walls of a classroom? With my program, AIFS allows us to learn beyond the classroom. Not only I am I getting a chance to see history firsthand through amazing pieces of art, I’m also learning so much about the fashion and the reasoning behind it all.
Class takes place in some of the greatest museums in Paris, and probably the whole world. Classes are spent studying art in the Louvre, Orsay, Carnavalet, Armée and Galliera to name a few. We gather around paintings and discuss the influence and functionality behind the garments; when you are studying and learning about fashion and history these paintings tell you so much more about their time period than meets the eye.
Liberty Leading the People
The class covers fashion in France from the 18th century all the way to the 20th. The amount of information I have learned so far is unreal and we have only covered the 18th century. When my professor is discussing life in the paintings, she is referring to buildings next door or places that are within the city that I can see and experience myself. You really feel up close and personal with history. Through these paintings you see fashion influences from the past, as far back as the ancient Greeks, and where inspiration is still drawn from today. For example, Christian Louboutin did not invent the red sole shoe, it actually came about in the early 18th century as men wore red on their heels to show that they had blood relation to the king. It’s an accomplished feeling to look at a piece of art and determine the time period it was created based on the fashion. I am looking forward to all the fashions yet to come in the course.
Just one selfie with La Gioconda
